Netflix Adolescence
The Netflix crime drama about a teenage boy accused of murdering a female classmate has been described as “a portrait of modern boyhood in profound crisis”.
While Adolescence isn’t based on a true story, its creators attribute the themes in the show to news stories about young boys being involved in knife crimes in the United Kingdom.
The show questions what can happen to a boy who’s rejected by traditional masculinity. Where does he go? What happens to someone craving affection and validation, who is so isolated?
In Adolescence, the teenage character is portrayed as having sought out support online, in the manosphere of online men’s communities dominated by misogynistic, anti-feminist views.
As Headmaster Tim Bowden shared with the School community in his InSite post of March 28 about the series, “the incomprehension of the adults in the school as to what was really going on in the minds and lives of the students was confronting, because it forced me to consider what our blind spots might be. Do we really know what voices and views are being heard by Trinity boys?”
He added that our best way into an understanding of the boys’ lived experience is through listening; in particular, the listening that can be provided by a trusted adult with whom a relationship of mutual respect exists. “Schools, at their best, can and should be contexts in which these relationships exist.”
In the final episode, as the boy’s parents wrestle with what they may or may not have done that has led to this situation, the emotional pain for the parents is excoriating and intense. “Notwithstanding the complexity of the situation, I was powerfully reminded of Jonathan Haidt’s claim in The Anxious Generation, that we overprotect our children in the real world, but underprotect them online. In this final episode, it becomes painfully clear that this family underprotected their son online.”
It may be that this show is able to underline, with emotional intensity, the wisdom that we have all heard.
- There should be no online devices in bedrooms.
- There should be parental engagement with the online life of their children.
- It is entirely appropriate for parents to set and enforce boundaries and expectations.
Some recommendations for parents:
- Do download and become familiar with the apps and sites your teens are on, so they feel a little less foreign and scary to you
- Review the resources provided for parents by the eSafety Commissioner at esafety.gov.au/parents
- Check out the federal government’s algorithm of disrespectresource at respect.gov.au/algorithm-of-disrespect
- Better understand your teen’s views around topics such as masculinity, social media, bullying or pornography. What you need to tap into first is, what is their point of view? What are they hearing? What sort of idea or opinion have they formed at this point?
- If you are concerned about your teenager’s behaviour or mental health, speak to your GP
